


For Her

by leandra1709



Category: Elfen Lied
Genre: F/M, Hospitals, Needles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-18 20:33:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28998309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leandra1709/pseuds/leandra1709
Summary: An epilogue to when Bando supposedly died and when he came back to Mayu. A prequel to my other fic: After Conclusion.
Relationships: Mayu/Bando





	For Her

**Author's Note:**

> Epilogue to the series and prequel to my other fic! I wondered what Bando was up to while he was gone for that long period of time, and he was probably working on going back to see Mayu, based on their reunion in the manga.

"...Bando-san...! ...Bando-san...!"

He could vaguely hear a voice calling his name but didn't have the strength to open his eyes. His entire body was in so much pain, bleeding out. He wanted to rest... just a little bit... Before he realized it, everything went black.

\--

"...heart rate is normal."

A new voice, a deep voice, made his eyes open. He squinted as a bright light was shining right in his face.

"Get this fucking light out of my eyes..."

The doctor standing to the side turned around. He was writing something on a clipboard and raised his eyebrows, "I see you're awake now. It looks like it was a success."

Bando's head was pounding. He couldn't remember what had happened before this. He wanted to sit up and see where he was, but he immediately felt immense pain in his abdomen.

"Gah, fuck!"

"Hmm, I would advise you to not try and move around. It will hurt," the doctor's voice was emotionless like he couldn't care less.

"No fucking shit. You couldn't have told me that before? God damnit. Who are you? Where the fuck am I?"

"You were found by Mr. Kurama on the beach, torn in half, on death's doorstep. For some reason, he decided to save your life and bring you here to be... well, fixed. And I am the surgeon who performed the surgeries."

He let out a deep breath and focused his eyesight on the ceiling. It was a white wall with nothing interesting to see. He tried pulling up his memories again.

'...Bando-san...!'

A girl's voice echoed in his mind. Who was it...? He remembered feeling... happy right before this. A feeling he'd never had before. Why? Why had he been happy? Oh right. Someone had said she loved him. Him, who had never opened up to any other human. Him, who had never felt the loving touch of another human. He, who had never even kissed anyone. He never thought that missing out on those would matter, but after getting them, he realized how much he longed for them.

"We're going to need to do some blood work and hook you up to an IV," the voice of the doctor broke his thoughts.

"You need to shut the fuck up. I'm trying to remember something," Bando snapped weakly at him.

The doctor began to clean his arm for the needle, and Bando looked away. He wanted to remember what had happened before. Why he felt comforted. As the needle slid in, her face materialized in his mind. That's right. It was that kid. Mayu.

His vein pulsed, causing some pain in his arm. The doctor placed a vial on the end of the tube and filled it up with blood. When it was pulled out of his arm, Bando began bleeding like crazy. The doctor hurriedly cleaned it up and put a new needle in, to connect to the IV. Bando grimaced, he hated needles and bloodwork. To distract himself, he went back to thinking about Mayu. She'd been the one to save his life the first time Lucy attacked him. He'd had his eyes gouged out and his arm torn off, and that girl was the one that helped him. He'd been screaming and swearing at her, but she still stayed and even called an ambulance for him. She saw him at his weakest and lowest point, dismembered and bleeding, but she had the courage to help him. That was what saved his life.

When he had returned to the beach after his first surgery, she came back to check on him. After that, there were several days that she would go see him, just to spend time together or talk. Sometimes she would bring him food she made, and, embarrassing as it had been, there was one time he took her to get ice cream, as a thank you for bringing him food. They sat on a bench together to eat, and he gave a death glare to anyone who gave them a second glance. Even though he had been mortified that it ruined his image as a badass, it was a memory that he looked fondly upon now. He would give anything to have that day back.

As his memories went through all of the events, he remembered what happened right before this. That bitch, Lucy, attacked him. After he found out that she lived as "Nyu". Mayu had known about her and lied to him about it. He'd gotten angry at her and told her to get away from him. He felt himself cringe with guilt and regret, remembering her face when he said that. That... "Nyu" personality of Lucy's did seem innocent. That was most likely why Mayu protected her.

Even after letting his frustration out on her, he used his life to protect hers, as she had done for him many times. It was then that he realized he had something to live for. He had her. 

"...So how bad was it?" he mumbled.

"Well, as I said, you were found torn in half on that beach. I don't think I need to explain how lucky you are to have survived that."

Bando scoffed, "Yeah, some luck."

The doctor flipped through the pages on the clipboard, "We were able to reattach some of your body, but you will need some prosthetics."

"Whatever... I'm used to that."

"You will also need to undergo some serious physical therapy. Once your body is healed enough from the surgery, of course. And that will take a while, so unfortunately you'll need to stay here for a time."

He groaned, "Great. I fucking love staying in hospitals and not doing anything."

"The director just asks you to not strike any nurses that come to assist you," the doctor said with a smirk. It appeared that Bando's misdeeds were known to everyone working there.

"Fuck off or I'll beat the shit out of you."

"As you wish," the doctor shrugged and began to walk out of the room.

Mayu's face flashed in Bando's mind again. He remembered something.

"Wait, hold up, I have a question for you."

"Yes?"

"The fuck happened to my cellphone?"

"Let me check," the doctor went through the clipboard again and stopped at one of the pages, "Let's see. It was found near you, but it was broken apparently."

"Did they just leave it behind or what?"

"No, they brought it here--"

"Give it to me."

With a sigh, the doctor retrieved a small plastic bag and handed it to him. The cellphone was shattered into pieces.

"The fuck?! You said 'broken', not fuckin' obliterated!"

"Well, that's all that was reported and that's how it is. If you'll excuse me, the nurse will be coming in to help you in a bit."

Bando stared back at the ceiling and heard footsteps walking away and the door closing. He didn't care if anyone was in there or not. He preferred if he was left alone anyway. He looked at the shattered phone in the plastic bag and sighed. He hoped he would have been able to at least make a call or find Mayu's number on it. Let her know he was... alive. He never called her before, she called him. He never really checked his phone to see what the number calling him was and he never typed or wrote down her number ever.

"He said it'll be a while before I can even start physical therapy and who knows how long that will be..."

It might be months until he could leave. Would she even remember him if he showed up again? Nah, no one ever remembered him except as 'that asshole who hit me/killed someone.' That thought made him feel a bit emotional, but he shook it off. As long as she was safe and happy, that was all that mattered. He could go to hell for all the shit he'd done in his life.

A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts.

"Um," a female voice spoke up, "Mr. Bando? I'm going to be your nurse for the night."

"Great," was his sarcastic reply. He didn't want to keep dealing with people, but he guessed he didn't have any choice. He had to do this to get out.

\--

"When are you gonna sign the fuckin' papers for me to get outta here?!"

With a sigh, the physical therapist had to explain to him, for probably the hundredth time, "There are still steps we need to go over and tests you need to pass."

"I've been here for 4 months! If I don't get out, I'm gonna lose my fucking mind!"

The other man rolled his eyes. He heard some variation of this almost every day. The staff was either annoyed or scared of Bando, due to his explosive temper and the fact that he yelled most of the time and threw around profanities.

"See if you can make it back to your bed by yourself while I go over some things with the nurse," the physical therapist said, exasperated.

"I'll fuckin' run to that bed. I don't need to be here anymore." Bando sounded sure of himself but struggled to walk back to his room. He often pushed himself harder than he should have. He just wanted out. He wanted freedom.

The nurse walked up to the doctor and the two spoke quietly. Despite trying to be discreet, Bando could hear them.

"I'll be glad when he's out of here. He's starting to get on my nerves."

"I wonder if he's like this to everyone. What about his family? Or even a girlfriend?"

"Supposedly he hasn't seen or spoken to his family in years. And from what I've heard, he's never been in a relationship."

Bando gritted his teeth. He wanted to yell at them for saying that shit with him nearby, but he felt slightly... insecure. So what if he didn't have anyone waiting for him to get out of here? No one who was worried or cared about him.

Mayu's face flashed in his mind. That's right. She cared about him. She was the thing keeping him pushing to get out of here. His goal now was to get better enough to go see her again. This gave him the drive to make his way back to his bed and lie down in it.

As he laid down, he looked around the hospital room. He hated hospitals. The words of the doctor and nurse had also struck a nerve with him. He'd be gone for 4 months already. Would Mayu remember him? Maybe she moved on and forgot about him already. Would anyone care if he lived or died?

Whenever he felt himself having these self-loathing thoughts, he remembered her face, crying when she thought he was dying. How she held him in her lap to comfort him, and the kiss she gave him when she confessed how she felt. He cringed slightly at that memory. Yeah, he cared about her a lot and probably even loved her, but she was still a kid. He decided that, if he managed to meet her again, he would do something with his life and dedicate himself to making sure she was happy and safe. Then, when she was older, she could make the decision on her feelings for him. His heart ached for her, just to see her again. Her smile. He would make sure he recovered to see her again.

\--

2 more months passed and then he was finally able to leave the hospital. It had been half a year since he was taken there. He was glad to leave it behind.

When he was asked where he wanted to go, he told them to take him to the beach that he had always been at. That was the last place he saw Mayu and their regular meeting spot.

On his way back, he wondered if the beach was going to be cluttered with trash again. He'd taken it upon himself to clean it every day, but half a year is a long time. He'd probably be busy for a while picking it all up. It gave him something to do, at least.

When he finally arrived at the town, he made his way down to the beach. Things didn't really seem all that different. It was like nothing had happened during or before he was in the hospital. He stepped one boot into the sand and analyzed it. He was surprised to see that it was... clean.

"The fuck? Someone else been cleanin' it?"

His eyes darted around but he didn't see anyone on the beach. He sat down on a large rock nearby, "Maybe it was her...?" That was hopeful thinking, but it was also the logical answer. No one else gave a shit about this beach except for him, and she apparently gave a shit about him. He rested his elbow on one of his thighs and watched the small waves crash and flow up the shore. It was a hundred times better than being in that tiny, bland room.

While staring off into the horizon, his peripheral caught the shape of a figure to his left. He turned his head to look and his heart stopped. It was her.

She was walking slowly, holding a large bag, and throwing trash into it. So she was the one cleaning it up, as he thought. So that must mean...

She came closer but had her head down, scanning for trash. She didn't notice him at all. He thought about how to approach her, but she stopped, put the bag down, and began talking softly to herself.

"If he were here right now, I wonder what he would say. Would he praise me?"

There was no mistaking it. She had been thinking of him. She remembered. He stood up slowly and walked towards her. She still didn't notice and was facing the ocean now.

"Nah, he'd probably say something like, 'It's still the same damn, dirty sea."

Bando smirked. She knew him so well. He felt a warm sensation in his chest and couldn't stop himself from smiling. He was so glad to see her. He spoke out finally, "It's still the same damn, dirty sea... but you did your best, didn't you?"

**Author's Note:**

> Here is the other story if you want to see Mayu's point of view and what happened after they reunited!
> 
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/28911687


End file.
